Sweating with your Sweetie
by MelissaSueD
Summary: AH, OOC, AU Eric's a hot shot lawyer who loves the gym and Sookie is the ever so pleasant receptionist
1. Chapter 1

**OH MY GOSH I DISAPPEARED AND I AM SO SORRY! I HAVE EXCUSES I SWEAR! Ok to make it snappy because I'm sure all of you are interested in what this story is about... my life got real interesting real quick. After the douchebag who will not get a name pulled that stunt we will not discuss... I think I found the person I'm actually meant to be with. Surprise! The rebound guy is the one I ended up falling in love with. It's been 4 months of pure bliss now and we're looking to move in together this summer. I also landed a solid job working in a fitness center which is the inspiration for this short little story. With that said... let's carry forth. **

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**Quick synopsis: Eric is a little bit of a meat head who constantly works out in this particular gym and he's definitely a Valentine's day hater. Sookie is the receptionist of said gym who would be bursting with little pink bubble hearts if possible. The fitness club is promoting a "get a free rose if you come sweat with your sweetie!" for the week leading up to Valentine's Day (which my club is actually doing). Watch as awkwardness and hilarity ensues. **

**Eric's POV**

Pink hearts, paper mache cupids, the disgusting sweet aroma of roses and boxes of overpriced chocolate, couples coo-cooing in every little corner -yeah it was definitely Valentine's Day. Eric felt a little bile rise into his throat as he watched a couple embrace after a man gave the woman a dozen red roses in the parking outside of his townhouse. He quickly covered up the little gagging noise he was making with a cough when he realized he was making his feelings known a little too loudly. The man was still burning a hole into the back of Eric's head as he peeled the tires of his red Corvette out of his parking space and out onto the roadway.

Valentine's Day always put Eric in a pissy mood every year. It wasn't because he was the bitter single guy, necessarily. Granted, he was single, but he could get a piece of ass whenever he wanted. No... Valentine's Day was the day he realized you could never have faith and trust in a woman. Eric looked like a playboy and for most of his life acted like a playboy. But one woman had tamed him, Felicia. Felicia made the roaring lion purr like a little pussy. Their relationship was all merry sunshine, make you want to vomit, etc. etc. And then he popped the question. The Eric Northman, confirmed bachelor, was going to settle down with this woman and get married. He even agreed to get married on the most unholy of days, Valentine's Day. But what did that ungrateful bitch do after he shelled out thousands of dollars for their dream wedding?

She stood him up at the altar.

Then she didn't return his phone calls for months after what would have been their wedding day. Hell she probably never would have spoken to him again if it weren't for the fact that he ran into her at another wedding, her wedding, to another dude. He was work associates with the groom and considerate it a bit of a firm duty to show up at the wedding. Eric didn't have a clue this guy was fucking his fiance while he was still in a relationship with her. That was a hard pill for him to swallow and made Eric swear off women for a while. Now he pretty much kept to himself, worked hard to try to make partner in his law firm, and got into dog fostering to abate the little bit of loneliness he had developed. The dogs kept the bed warm enough that was for sure. And he knew the dogs weren't going to run off and jump on the next dick available, metaphorically speaking that is.

Eric was musing in white knuckle fury his entire drive to the gym. He had to work off some of this stress. He kept telling himself that after this part of February was over, the world would be a better place. That and he wouldn't try to scream down the throat of every Tom, Dick, and Harry who pissed him off. His anger, pessimism, and sarcasm were at an all time high right now and heaven forbid anybody got in his path. Eric pulled into a parking lot space like he owned the joint. Yes, he was one of those people that believed that just because he had a big car, it gave him the right to park like a douche. He was well aware of this fact, but frankly didn't care. Let people complain if he took up two spots, he didn't want to see the paint scratched on his baby. He grabbed his duffle bag of work out clothes from the back seat and headed inside the gym.

**Sookie's POV**

Love was most definitely in the air this Valetine's Day. For the first time in Sookie's 26 years she actually had a valentine! Granted she wasn't sure if he was a legitmate valetine or not but she was very excited. She had just started seeing Bill right after Christmas so the relationship was still brand new, but she knew it wasn't too new to get a little something for each other for Valentine's Day, the international holiday of love! And boy, was she chock full of love. Unfortunately she hadn't had much opportunity to share that love outside of her friends and family. Some people had on occasion called her crazy Sookie and she was not naïve as to why. Sookie had big Southern girl charm. She was polite as all get out to everyone she met, forever had a smile plastered on her face, she had manners for miles, and Southern charm and good looks to boot. Everyone thought she must be addled in the brain a little bit to be so sweet and so innocent. It was just how she was raised to be.

But Bill seemed to enjoy her bubbly nature. They randomly met by bumping into each other at a coffee shop. Ok, they literally bumped into each other at a coffee shop. Bill caused Sookie to accidentally spill her two shot tall caramel macchiato all over the floor. He offered sincere apologizes and a replacement, she was just glad it didn't get all over her new polka dot print silk dress. He kept insisting on at least paying for the cup that was all over the floor. Eventually they exchanged phone numbers. Bill started texting her shortly after meeting her, texts turned to phone calls, and phone calls eventually turned into dates. They didn't go out all too often, Bill was incredibly busy with work, and so was she. But what little time they were starting to spend with one another was fabulous in Sookie's mind. It was the start of what could be a good relationship. They were in the budding stages where they were just getting to know one another. Who knows what would come next?

She especially enjoyed working at the fitness center around the loving holiday. She was a receptionist at a very prestige health center and fitness club in Shreveport Louisiana. Her smile and charm was just the perfect ingredient for her job. It also didn't require a college education, which she had yet to get. Sookie was working on it though, with a combination of online classes and night classes. The fitness center was offering all sorts of deals and goodies to the cliental for Valentine's Day. They offered partner candlelight yoga sessions in one of the quieter studio rooms. They had great rates and deals for couples who were joining the club together, and then Sookie's favorite was the Sweating with your Sweetie promotion. If you came into the club with your significant other in the week preceding Valentine's Day then you both would get a rose and your names put in a drawing for a romantic dinner on Valentine's night at the cities' premiere steakhouse. She hoped Bill would come work out with her so they could throw their names in the hat for the drawing.

Sookie was lost in her own thoughts when her least favorite patron came in the fitness center. She wasn't judgemental and was usually all smiles for all the customers... but this guy just got under her skin for all sorts of reasons. For one, he just looked cocky, all the time, whether it be when someone was looking or not. It was a general constant and consistent look on his face. She wasn't sure what he did for a living but it definitely afforded him Gucci, Armani, and Prada suits, because he always paraded into the club wearing them before he changed into his workout clothes. He acted like the world owed him a favor just because he was handsome and powerful. Sookie could care less if he were dung on her shoe. He walked up to the counter and fished around for his swipe card, as was his custom every time he walked in. And every time he came in he could never find it.

"Don't worry Mr. Northman, you're good." Sookie would say, wanting him to just walk away as quickly as possible.

"You have no idea how good I am." Would always be his spine tingling response with a wink. And it was not the good kind of tingle. This was the when a stranger decides to stand to close to you when they talk to you and invade your personal space kind of tingle.

"Enjoy your work out." Sookie managed to choke out around the lunch that was threatening to exit her esophagus. She couldn't wait until he left the gym that day so she wouldn't have to look at his pompous ass anymore.

_A/N: Well? I am not expecting this to be to terribly long of a story. And don't worry about my other projects I started. I have not abandoned them. As soon as I find the written copies of them I am going to have them all typed up and uploaded. Fanfiction, I am back!_


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you all so much for the positive response about the first chapter. I know the rest of this story is coming after Valentine's day but stick with me haha.**

**Eric POV**

It always tickled Eric pink, so to speak, to see the front desk receptionist of the gym. He knew she detested him and it kind of perked him up to take his foul mood out on her by being the biggest pig that he could be. He started coming to the gym in the first place to relieve a significant amount of stress in his life that he couldn't find outlets for otherwise. So, in general, he was always walking through those glass doors with a chip on his shoulder before his work out. In the back of his mind he knew it was an asshole thing for him to do, to just be a dick to someone he didn't know just because he could be, but what's the harm in obnoxiously flirting with a pretty piece of ass who probably always gets it from the meatheads in the gym anyways? Yeah, Eric would definitely justify his actions to himself.

He headed off to the locker room with just one backward glance and a wink at the receptionist. Eric chuckled to himself; she probably wanted to punch his lights out. At least that was the vibe he was getting from the look she was cutting him across the lobby. He changed into his work out clothes quickly, ignoring the few regulars who tried to start up a conversation with him. Working out was not a team sport, there was no point in getting friendly with anyone else at the gym. He never used equipment he would need a spotter on anyways. Eric locked up his bag and street clothes in his locker and headed out to the floor, iPod already blaring the Swedish death metal that would get him pumped for his work outs. Eric went through a pretty heavy cardio routine on the treadmill, getting his heart racing, and then hit the weights, concentrating mainly on his upper body. He finished up his work out with some core exercises. By the end of it all he was absolutely covered in sweat and probably did not smell like a field of daisies. Eric hit the showers, letting his hair air dry down out of a pony tail. He had the kind of long blonde hair that on any other guy would just look effeminate. However, on him, it was reminiscent of the days the Vikings plundered and pillaged. Eric had always worn his hair long.

The work out did a most excellent job of relieving his stress. He was as calm as a Hindu cow as he started walking towards the exit of the fitness club. Eric even managed to forget Felicia for a few blissed out hours. With a little more bounce to his step as he walked past the desk he issued a rather nice farewell to the receptionist. She was no longer on the receiving end of any type of fury, seeing as how that animal had just been caged.

He felt downright gentlemanly as he called out, "Have a pleasant evening ma'am." Eric even gave her a genuine smile, devoid of any hint of his trademark leer.

It caught her off guard. She visibly flushed as she tidied up some papers in front of the computer. She opened her cute little mouth and even stuttered a little before she wrapped her lovely lips around the sentence she was trying to say. "I, uh, I mean you... *ahem* Have a good weekend Mr. Northman. And uh, Happy Valentine's Day."

Eric stopped dead where he was, hand outstretched towards the door handle and left foot slightly in front of his right. The bottom fell out of his stomach and all of the things he just tried to work out came bubbling back to the surface. _Fucking bitch._ Was Eric's first thought. What came out of his mouth was, "There's is **nothing** happy about that fucking day." His voice came out cold, harsh, raw... almost as if he were growling at her. He grabbed the door handle without another word, another glance, and pulled it open none to gently. It slammed into the wall behind him as he walked out and he could hear the glass rattling. Thankfully nothing broke. Eric didn't care if it did or not for money reasons, he just wanted to get the fuck away from someone before he punched an innocent bystander. Maybe he should just keep to himself for the rest of the month? Eric practically dove into his car and sped away. Knowing his luck today, he'd probably get a speeding ticket on the drive home. At this point, he just wanted a bottle of Sailor Jerry and no one to fucking bother him until March.

**Sookie POV**

Sookie wanted to throw things at Mr. Northman's retreating back as he headed towards the locker rooms. Not only was he verbally propositioning her none to subtly but he just had to toss a wink and that disgusting smile over his shoulder as he walked away. She quickly shook it off. She was not going to let that asshole ruin her day and affect her demeanor towards other customers. Sookie snapped out of it to find a few of the guests needed her help with something. She spent the next few hours updating records in the computer, putting new credit cards on file, and tracking down account information from clients that had been grandfather into the club from the establishment that was there prior. All in all, Sookie was too busy to breathe, let along think as she chugged along with her work.

Before she knew it her shift was almost over and she began tidying up the desk. Even though most of what the fitness club does is through the computers, they still had to have paper copies of every transaction that was made. This literally meant EVERY transaction, regardless of if it involved money or not. Sookie made sure everything was present and account for and was just putting together a stack of papers for the courier to take over to corporate when a voice interrupted her work. It was his voice. And for once he wasn't being a dick. It caught Sookie off guard and she didn't know quite what to do. She continued to shuffle her papers for a moment. Then, he sent her a gorgeous smile. Did she just think his smile was gorgeous? The smile he aimed at her was nothing like any of the other smiles he had previously bestowed upon her. She didn't know quite what to say as he was walking away and made a jumbled up word salad in her attempt to say good bye as he headed towards the door. She vaguely comprehended what came out of her mouth but she knew she said something about Valentine's Day because that was the trigger that set the ticking time bomb that was Mr. Northman off.

In all her years, though they were short, Sookie had never had a look so deadly aimed at her. She felt the temperature drop in the room underneath the steely gaze of his ice blue eyes. The words that came out of his mouth were like a slap to the face. She never meant anything by what she said, even though she couldn't really recall what exactly had come out of her mouth. She stood stunned behind the desk, not quite breathing, heart slamming into her ears, as he grabbed the door handle and flung it open. When it crashed into the wall she visibly jumped. Sookie still didn't move as she watched him speed out of the parking lot. The first random thought that came to mind was she preferred the snarky, cocky, and inappropriate Mr. Northman over the one she just saw. The second random thought was that the guy was obviously like an onion; probably had many layers but the end result would leave a bad taste in your mouth.

Hands shaking slightly, Sookie counted out her drawer and logged off of the computer as the other receptionist, Alcide, came into the gym. He took one look at her and knew something was wrong, asking her to talk about it. All Sookie wanted to do was get the hell out of the gym and call Bill to come spend a little time with her, calm her down. She said goodbye to Alcide and was already dialing Bill's number before she hit the parking lot. He picked up on the 2nd ring.

"Hey you, what's up?" Bill said by way of greeting.

"I just had something really weird happen at work just now and I could use a little company tonight, if you're available." Sookie said quietly into the phone.

"You know that would be great. But I can't tonight. I'm so sorry. But I am free tomorrow. You are still off tomorrow right?"

"Yeah, I have the whole day. We'll just make plans as we go along tomorrow ok? And yeah... I understand you're busy. I'll just curl up with a good book tonight, shake the day off. Give me a call tomorrow?"

"I'll call you when I'm on my way. Goodnight!"

"Alright sounds good. Goodnight!"

Sookie was already driving to some unknown destination when she hung up the phone. She wasn't really headed towards home, nor was she heading anywhere in particular. The only thing she wanted to do at the moment was forget the day ever happened. When she looked around and recognized where she was on the road she started heading to a new destination. Tonight it was going to be her, a good book, and the dame Queen Victoria riding shotgun on a bottle of Bombay Sapphire.

_A/N: A thousand apologies on the delayed update. I thought recently I would have more time to write and alas.... I'm busy as shit. I will update when I can. This year has been so much in such a short amount of time already. Bless you all for dealing with my chicanery. _


	3. Chapter 3

**I don't own these characters at all! Those lovely rights belong to the talented Charlaine Harris. I just take them out to play often. Thank you all for the lovely reviews I have gotten so far. Without further ado, here you go!**

**Eric's POV**

The liquor store was shining like an oasis in the desert to Eric after his day. March would be his month. He would just have to continue to suck it up and deal with February. Maybe this would be the year he actually took his sister Pam's advice and went to go see someone for his relationship and anger management issues. He just never understood why 'She Who Would Not Be Named" got under his skin the way she did and caused him to lash out in the most unexpected of ways. She was everywhere in his life ever since she left; well not physically that is. She was in the clothes he picked out for himself. She was in the half of the bed he still refused to sleep on. Her scent was still in his memory playing all sorts of fucked up mind games with him.

Eric never actively thought about Felicia. Well, he never chose to actively think about her. She just happened to come to mind quite often whenever something happened that reminded him of her. Like girls wearing her brand of perfume. Girls laughing the way she used to. Brunettes. Girls in general. Couples in general. Long story short, he was reminded of her more often than was healthy and he didn't react very kindly to those memories. To put it gently, Eric was a dick. The only people he was even close to being nice to where his sister and his clients.

Eric's clients were another story all together. He was quite the prodigy in law school and passed the bar at only 23 (he had been accepted into his undergraduate pre-law program at the tender age of 16). He quickly worked his way up through a prestigious law firm and made partner by the time he was 30. His family contacts didn't hurt his rapid rise through the firm, that's for sure. The firm handled just about any large case you could imagine. The ones Eric took personal interest in were high-end divorce cases, and ones in which the woman was the philanderer and she wasn't going to get a damn dime in the settlement. These cases were multi-million dollar ones with clients who had severely crossed the lines of discretion in their battle. Oftentimes there were children (belonging biologically to the male and not to the female in the dispute) and lots of assets tied up in property and investments. Sometimes there was a prenuptial agreement and sometimes there was not. Whatever the case was, it was going to be disputed anyways. Older men with younger women, looking for a sugar daddy. Eric hated these women. They all represented giant Felicias to him. She he did everything in his power to fight for these male clients as ruthlessly as possible. These men never knew it, but Eric himself could have been in the same position as them.

Eric walked into the ABC store and headed right towards the rum section. It was still early in the day so he could kill the rest of it with a 5th of Sailor Jerry and still be good to go for work the next morning. He still needed to stop by the grocery store to get some food to cook up for a late lunch and dinner before he got too plastered and was unable to tell the difference between a sauté pan and a spatula. He grabbed the bottle in question and headed towards the check out counter. Eric was counting the bills out of his wallet when he heard the twinkle of the door opening behind him and the familiar scent of Felicia's perfume wafted into the room. He prayed to whatever God that may have been listening to let it not be her. He was rooted to the spot and refused to turn around to see whom the aroma clung to.

**Sookie's POV**

Sookie pulled into the ABC parking lot and just before she was about to get out, she noticed Mr. Northman's car sitting a few spaces down from hers. The first thought that jumped in her mind was, _Good, maybe a drink will simmer him down some so he doesn't have to jump down everyone's throat. _The second thought was, _Well shit, do I find another one or do I just go in? _

Sookie decided she wasn't going to leave and find another ABC store, so she mustered up her courage and got out of her car. Her breathing was a little heavy and as she put her hand on the glass store door. Her inner mantra was chanting _Please don't let him see me._ Sookie silently cursed the jingling door as she walked in. Of course he would be standing right in front of her. He had to make her nice day a terrible one from start to finish. He visibly tensed the moment the door closed behind her. Her mouth decided to act without her brain's permission and she spoked to him.

"Well, fancy seeing you here."

Sookie didn't think it was possible for someone to turn around that fast. He literally pirouetted on the spot. His eyes were a little wide at first but when they landed on her he busted out laughing. This wasn't your simple chuckle. This was a bend over and hold your waist so you don't pee, deep laugh. Mr. Northman was laughing so hard he was crying. Sookie wasn't sure whether she should call somebody for help or laugh along with him. What the hell was wrong with him? When he finally came up for air he said, still chuckling, "You need to get some new perfume."

Sookie saw a little bit red. That comment stung a bit. "I beg your pardon? I happen to like Vera Wang, Princess." She put her hands on her hips and was tapping her foot. The counter clerk had made himself scarce after ringing up Mr. Northman's order and bagging it in the appropriate sized bag. She wondered what he had bought. Maybe he was in there for the same reasons she was. She stopped her musings when he moved.

Mr. Northman finally straightened up and stopped laughing. There was still a smile on his lips which seemed to suit him better than his trademark scowl. His eyes held a little bit of that steel gaze however. "Miss, no woman is ever a princess. And they certainly shouldn't ever try to go around smelling like one."

Well, ouch. Sookie just stared at him. Make that little bit of stinging a slow burn. Bill happened to really enjoy her perfume. He even mentioned it was the first thing he noticed about her when they first met. She wasn't quite sure how to take the comment. Should she be offended or should she just let it go? She decided to keep the peace and started to walk away from him. "You have a good day Mr. Northman." She called over her shoulder.

"You do the same Sookie." She heard the jingle of the bell and knew that he was gone. She walked over to the gin aisle and grabbed a 5th of Bombay Sapphire and made her way back to the counter. After she paid, she hopped back into her car, and headed towards the nearest grocery store for tonic water, amongst other supplies that were lacking in her kitchen. She pulled into a spot fairly close to the store, got out and entered. She wasn't sure how much shopping she would end up doing so she grabbed a cart and headed on her merry way. Sookie wasn't paying too much attention to her surroundings as she headed down the aisles, tossing this or that into her cart. It wasn't until she ran into someone else's cart that was was jarred back into her senses.

"Oh I'm so sorry." Was the apology she started to mutter, but when she looked up at the victim of her crime she let out a huff. "Oh for the love of God, not you again." She covered her mouth in embarrassment at what she blurted out.

"Nice to see you again too." Mr. Northman said with a small chuckle. Sookie just wanted to get away from him. She needed to finish of her day with good vibes. Not all the confusing bad juujuu vibes he was throwing around.

"I didn't mean it like that. I just feel like you're following me." She shuffled her feet as she made her half-assed apology for her rudeness, that was still in and of itself, rude.

"Correct me if I'm wrong Sookie, but at both places so far, I happened to have been there first. It seems to me that you are the one that is doing the following." He narrowed his eyes at her.

"Please, I wouldn't follow you if I was starving and you had a filet mignon attached to your ass, Mr. Northman." Woah, where did THAT come from? She mentally congratulated herself. But her little pat herself on the back victory dance didn't last very long.

He gave her a deadly smile and started to turn away. "Any time you feel the need to take a bite out of me, let me know and we can arrange that. Oh, and please, call me Eric." With that sly comment Mr. Northman, uhem, Eric, walked away; putting a little more shimmy and shake to his step than was necessary.

_A/N: Well kids, I am trying to find time for all of my stories and see which ones are coming to me when I'm writing. I want to get back into Your Comfort Object but to be honest, it's been so long I'm not sure I even remember where I was even GOING with that story so I might just abandon it until I can figure out what's happening. I don't want that story to lose it's integrity by just half-assing it. I Said NO Venetian Blinds will be getting an update very soon. That's a promise. I'm already working on it. I don't know if most of you know this or not but I handwrite everything I do (my own novels I'm working on included) it's just a practice I've always done, and then I transfer it over onto a computer or typewriter. I have a lot of stuff for fanfiction I just haven't found the time to put on the computer yet. Transcribing your own work can get tedious because you'll edit and change so much. Anywho. That's neither here nor there. I hope you enjoyed this chapter!_


	4. Chapter 4

**I have no legit excuse for where I've been and what I've been up to so I'm not even going to try to bore you with those details. **

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**Without further adieu all rights to these characters go to Charlaine Harris. Without your genius I wouldn't be able to do the strange things that I do in my spare time.**

**Sookie POV**

_Fuck that guy. No, seriously... fuck that guy. _Sookie stormed out of the grocery store with her plastic bags in hand, leaving her cart at the self check-out (something she never does) and heading towards her car. Could the day get any better? Why did she have to continually run into the one thing that just kept making her day even better. That was sarcasm at it's finest. She unceremoniously dumped her grocery store booty into the backseat of her car and flopped down into the driver's seat. Taking two deep breaths in, she started the engine and headed home.

Pulling into her driveway, Sookie reached into her mail box to see if anything special came in today. Perhaps today was the day Publisher's Clearinghouse would throw money at her! Maybe today was the day she would discover the will of a long lost dead Uncle? Nope. Utility bill, collections agency, medical bill, past due notice, hey stupid lady pay your mortgage notice. Ugh, when would they ever stop? Her Grandmother, at her passing, left her in debt up to her eyeballs with not a very good shovel to dig herself out. Things were starting to get better with the expansion of the fitness club and added responsibilities to her job position. What she really wanted to do was to go back to school and get another degree; to get a real career job. But right now, it simply was not in the cards.

Sookie pulled into the garage and grabbed all the goodies in the car, bringing it into her home. Before she ever put the groceries away she poured herself a liberal gin and tonic and took a healthy sip. It stung her throat in quite a soothing way and made the day and her problems fade in to the background. After a few more slow sips, she set about putting groceries away; leaving various items out so that she could cook dinner. It was going to be a night of brown rice and stir fried vegetables in soy sauce for her. Easy to make, easy to eat, and definitely easy on the hips that have seemed to expand in her mid 20s. Sookie grabbed the pots and pans and got started.

**Eric POV**

Is there ever a time in your life when you feel like you are being followed by the ghost of your past? The scent of her reminds him of she who shall not be named. Some of her mannerisms remind him of that same person. And for some reason she always seems to gravitate to where he happens to be in a given day. She's always working when he comes in to the gym. And now today... today... she's everywhere where he is after he leaves the gym.

Eric runs his free hand roughly through his hair as he grips the cart with the other. He just wanted a quiet day. He just wanted to forget everything. He wanted no reminders. Right now he's over run with them. The damn woman's scent throws him back to another time and it only dredges up memories he'd rather leave buried. She didn't look a thing like her though. Hell, for the most part she doesn't even act a bit like her either. But, there's just something about her...about Sookie.

Eric shakes it off as he finishes his shopping trip, throwing a couple more items into the cart as he heads towards the check out line. The underage clerk makes a horrible attempt to flirt at him and he makes it a point to stare at his wallet until she finishes talking. Eric doesn't want to lead her on. He doesn't even want to flirt for fun. False hope will always lead to heart ache. This poor girl is too young. Today is not the day for her to understand that, and he will not be the one to ultimately destroy her bubble gum pink fantasies of love. He quickly pays and leaves the store, heading towards his townhome at a brisker pace than the cops would like.

Eric pulls into his parking spot, bitching about how no one seems to know how to park in his community. How hard is it to just pull in straight between two solid white lines? Is it really that difficult? Eric tried to park as far away from the other cars as possible, not wanting anyone to park too closely and open their door onto his pride and joy. A scratch in his paint job was absolutely the last thing he needed right now.

Juggling the groceries, unlocking the door, and disabling the door was a skill not many can come by easily but one he had seemingly mastered. He was able to put the groceries down without a fumble and close the door with his foot. While putting the groceries away, Eric whipped a shot glass out of his collection (a pirate, from one of his many trips to the Bahamas) to poor himself a shot of his buddy Sailor Jerry. The shot slid between his lips like warm butter and heated him from head to toe. That was the ticket. After one more shot he set about cooking dinner.

**Sookie POV**

Sookie was done cooking dinner and set it on the dining room table with a flourish. Maybe, just maybe she had one or two more gin and tonics while she was cooking. Don't judge a girl, she was a little out of sorts and it was not like she was driving anywhere. As was her custom recently (since Bill seemed to be pretty busy) she fired up her computer and had it in front of her while she dug in. She had found a great message board/chatroom for people who just wanted to talk about their days. SO NOT A DATING WEBSITE! As she was quick to admit to her best friend. It was just something to do when she had, well, nothing to do. All of the people on there seemed to be pretty cool and no one said anything uncouth or out of place. She logged in under her username in the chatroom (SwtSthrnBlle) and noticed only one other person was in there. _Hmmm, should be interesting?_

_SwtSthrnBlle: _Top of the evening to you!

_SverigePojke: _Haha, that greeting seems a little off to your screen name. Are you Irish?

_SwtSthrnBlle: _Maybe back in the day, I'm not sure. Haha, but I was just saying... how are you this evening?

_SverigePojke: _Oh I've had better nights but that's neither here nor there. I'm just now enjoying my wonderful dinner that I cooked for myself. With my own two hands. From scratch might I add. Quite an accomplishment for a confirmed bachelor such as myself!

_SwtSthrnBlle: _I just cooked dinner for myself as well! I am actually eating it while I'm typing to you, I hope that's not rude?

_SverigePojke: _Not unless you are talking to me with your mouthful. Then again I would never know because I can't see you. So point – null and void :)

Sookie looked around on the chat screen and noticed there was an option for video chatting. Could that be a possibility with a stranger? It's not like he said anything untoward or creepy? Heck, he probably didn't even have a camera.

_SwtSthrnBlle: _Strange question, ever video chatted on here? It would be like a phone call, with video? And we could eat our dinners together! Ok, maybe that sounded a little cheesy.

_SverigePojke: _I've never video chatted but I see the button. I'm game if you are game. Thought let me get decent real quick. I put just a pair of sleep pants on to lounge in.

_SwtSthrnBlle:_ O... where's the blush button? Hahha. Ok... take your time!

Sookie ran into the bathroom real quick to cheek her appearance. She had changed after work but she was in a cute little tank top and shorts. Her hair was pulled back in to a messy bun and she still had her make up on (seeing as she had yet to take a shower). All in all she gave herself a 10 on appearance. She quickly ran back to the computer. And she was just in time.

_SverigePojke has entered into video chat_

_SwtSthrnBlle has entered into video chat_

In about a second felt she screamed "OH SHIT!" And slammed her computer screen shut and started backing away from her dining room table.

**Eric POV**

As soon as the computers connected he recognized the face on the other end. It was the receptionist from the fitness center. He had only a second to process the moment before she disconnected from the chat.

_SwtSthrnBlle has disconnected_

"Well holy fuck." He stated outloud.

_A/N: No promises as to when this may be finished. Life got weird. Writing got difficult. I am trying. I love you all._


	5. Chapter 5

**I am sorry if the formatting is off on this. I typed on a computer I normally don't type on. I am trying to get back into writing and it is difficult. I know where I want all my stories to go... it's just a matter of actually writing them.**

**All rights go to Charlaine Harris for the characters of course!**

**ERIC POV**

Saying Eric slept like a baby that night would have been the lie of a century. He paced the corners of his room hoping to wear out the carpet and eventually wear himself out. It was a lost cause from the start and he knew it. After continuously pacing, he settled on just staring at the walls from the comfort of his fluffy, yet masculine (and don't you dare think otherwise), bed. All that happened from that was Eric noticed an annoying fly that kept flitting from one corner to another. His mind didn't want to settle down. It kept jumping back and forth between two completely different topics: his hate for Felicia and the strangeness of running into the receptionist girl at every corner lately. It was uncanny the amount of times Eric had seen her in just one day alone. Then, when he thought he was finally rid of her, she turns out to be the girl he's been sort of chatting with over the past few weeks in a vague chatroom scenario. However tonight was the first night that they were the only ones in the chatroom.

_What in the hell is going on? _Eric thought to himself as he let out a huff of air and climbed out of his bed. He headed straight towards the ktichen, tripping over old squeaky toys along his way from dogs of the past. He currently wasn't fostering but he never got rid of toys, not knowing when a new dog was going to come in the door. Once in the kitchen he poured himself a few shots... hoping that maybe, just maybe, if he got shitty enough he would forget the stupid shit he was thinking about Felicia and stop wondering about this Sookie girl. Maybe, just maybe, he would fall asleep.

An hour later, and half a bottle gone... Eric was snoring heavily on the couch with his arms and legs thrown haphazardly over the sides. He finally was able to sleep.

**SOOKIE POV**

As soon as she screamed and slammed the computer shut, Sookie felt as if a drummer was battling it out in her chest. Her heart was threatening to jump out of her throat and she even felt a little dizzy. She probably even slammed her computer hard enough to do a little damage. _What in the world was that pompous ass doing on my screen? _She thought as she bent over at the waist, trying desperately to breathe. This day was just getting weirder and weirder. She didn't want to see Mr. Northman any more than she had to, but today he just happened to be around every. single. freakin'. corner!

Shakily standing up straight, Sookie checked the damage on her computer. All seemed to be well and she breathed a sigh of relief. She just wanted this day past her, so she slipped into bed... grabbing her black out mask and sleeping pill. There was no way in hell she was going to be able to sleep without a little help. She felt the fuzziness of the pill kicking in and the last thing she thought about was "What would he have looked like if he would have just videoed in sleep pants alone?"

**ERIC POV**

Eric woke up with a fuzzy head and a vague ringing in his ears. He shook his head to clear the cobwebs out and to clear the ringing... but the ringing didn't seem to go away. It took him a few moments to realize it was his house phone that was making the disgustingly loud and offensive noise. He stumbled towards the wall and pulled the cordless off.

"Hello?" Eric croaked roughly into the phone. His tongue was dry and swollen from the dehydration of the alcohol the night before.

He heard a chuckle on the other end. "Rough night?" Ugh. Bill Compton. The last person he wanted to hear from this morning. If thoughts could kill he would hear the sound of Bill's phone falling to the floor right this very second.

"Speak." Eric wasn't even going to talk to him more than necessary.

"I was just calling to inform you of a few things. Number one: your Executive Assistant quit today, without notice." Eric palmed his face and wanted to strangle Compton within an inch of his life for the smug tone of his voice. "Secondly: She was planning an event that has now gone unfinished. Thirdly: The other partners want you in today as soon as possible."

Eric was clenching and unclenching his fists, trying desperately not to put one of them into the wall in front of himself. "And you got the lovely task of being messenger boy didn't you Compton? You would make a fine Executive Assistant, you're hired!" He said in his most sarcastic voice. He heard the intake of Bill's breath as the man tried to muster up an outraged comment or comeback. "Now don't get your panties in a twist, you wouldn't want your superiors to know how hot headed you can get. Wait, I am your superior. Thanks for the information Bill. I'll leave the task of searching for an adequate pool of replacements up to you. I'll be in at noon." Eric then hung up with a self-satisfied smirk on his face. _Take that you fucking douche. _He thought as he walked into the bathroom to start the shower, clearing away the rest of the hangover.

**SOOKIE POV**

Sookie woke up about 30 minutes before her alarm was due to go off. She hated when that happened because she couldn't fall back asleep and she felt like she was missing out on something important. She pulled herself out of bed and went downstairs to start a pot of coffee. Checking her phone along the way for messages, she noticed she had a cute little text from Bill, "I'm a jerk... the BIGGEST jerk. Something at work came up and I'm not going to be able to get away until dinner tonight. Will you do me the honor of being the beautiful woman on my arm for dinner tonight?" Sookie smiled and blushed. Smiled because Bill was thoughtful enough to let her know in advance that plans had changed and blushed because he had complimented her. Sookie wasn't big into the dating scene nor did she have men lining up to pay her compliments, so it always felt like a huge deal when and if they did.

It was Sookie's day off and she had no idea where to begin once she had a steaming cup of coffee in her greedy little mitts. Days off were few and far between for her. She was always working so that she could make enough money to take care of past debts that her late grandmother had acrued in medical expenses and housing expenses. Or she was super busy trying to squeeze in a night class or two. She wanted desperately to go back to school. Once upon a time she was enrolled in University but had to drop out to take care of her ailing grandmother. Now, now she wanted to go back. However, the finances were no longer what they were. She'd figure it out eventually.

After one more cup of coffee and some breakfast, Sookie set about cleaning the large farmhouse she thought of as home as a child. It collected dust like nobodies business and she couldn't remember the last time she gave it a good cleaning. In no time she was a whirl of dust bunnies, rubber gloves, and cleaning supplies. Her morning and afternoon seemed to fly by and she finally took a break when she noticed her stomach growling louder than the vacuum cleaner. She took a seat on the couch with a sandwich and a cool glass of lemonade and looked at the clook. _Holy crap it's 4pm!_

Sookie dropped her food and ran towards her phone to see if she had a missed call or text from Bill. She flipped it open, almost dropping it in the process. She did have a missed text! Her face dropped as she read it. "I'm sorry to have to cancel on you for dinner tonight, I really am awful. But some unavoidable things are continuing to crop up at work and I really won't be able to leave the office until late. Maybe we could do dessert?"

Sookie texted back hastily. "Yeah, just let me know. I'll be out but we can meet up somewhere." She went back to eating her sandwich, trying to decide what she was going to do with her night now.

**ERIC POV**

_What kind of shit storm did I just walk in to? _Eric thought as he climbed out of his car in the parking garage and took the elevator to the top floor of his office building. He was doing ever meditation technique he could think of not to stab all of his underlings. Why the hell did his Executive Assistant quit without notice? Last time he checked, she was doing an amazing job at her position and she seemed to enjoy it. Something must have happened within the office and you bet your ass he was going launch an internal investigation over it. Knowing his luck lately, Eric's firm would probably be hearing from some lawyer or another in a week and somebody would be slapped with a sexual harassment lawsuit. Or she had been misappropriating funds. Or something equally as seedy. Who knows. Eric was sure as shit going to find out, that's for damn sure.

He marched a loud tattoo towards his office and no one dared to even wish him a good afternoon. He quickly opened his double doors and slammed them shut behind himself. He looked around... everything in the office appeared just as he had left it the day before. That was eityher really good news or really bad news. Someone had either been through the room and placed everything back accordingly, or no one had been in there at all. There was only one way to find out. Eric climbed into his large dark brown leather chair behind his giant oak desk and kicked his feet up. He unlocked the top drawer of the desk with a key that he was the only holder of a copy and pulled out a remote. With a single flick of the remote his plasma television set that was always set to the BBC news switched over to a high quality black and white security cam vision of his office. He could see himself on the picture and waved his arm. He got up, walked around the office. At various points of the room the camera switched angles based on motion detection. Eric, satisfied that all was within working order with his security system, set the system to playback from last night.

The first two hours of film showed only his Executive Assistant coming in and out, placing various memos in his incoming basket. Nothing interesting there. It wasn't until around 7pm that something interesting happened. His assistant walked into the room and shortly after her, Bill Compton. Eric eased his elbows up onto his desk and steepled his hands in front of his face, watching intently. Bill had a creepy smile on his face and his assistant appeared to be uncomfortable, but neither was making any move to close the distance between one another. Neither of them seemed to be raising their voices, having a calm, quiet discussion. After about 10 minutes of this discussion Eric noticed a tear or two streaming down his assistants face and Bill laughing. Bill then shrugged his shoulders and walked out of the room. His assistant buried her head in her hands and let out a few sobs before composing herself. She made sure all of the lights were shut off in the office and then walked out.

Eric sat back in his chair. It seemed as if he had the first lead as to what happened and how his day was going to begin today. He called Bill's secretary. "Hello Janet, will you have Mr. Compton come into my office immediately. Thank you."


End file.
